If you’ve watched even one of the videos from the 100+ Real Food video library available on this blog, you probably know that I have a microwave in my kitchen.
Do I use it for cooking or heating anything that my family consumes?
No. I haven’t used a microwave to heat or cook anything in many, many years. I much prefer my small countertop convection oven which doesn’t heat food unnaturally and creates carcinogens like a microwave does.
Why don’t I just remove the microwave from my kitchen then? The truth is that the microwave can function as a handy airtight cupboard and proves quite useful for other tasks besides cooking and heating believe it or not.
I mentioned in one of my Real Food videos that I frequently use it for airtight, room temperature storage of freshly baked bread, cookies, and other baked goods.
It also works very well for making homemade raw yogurt. It is, of course, made from unpasteurized milk.
What about Greek yogurt? Is Greek yogurt better? How about the similar German style cheesy yogurt known as Quark? While not necessarily healthier, if you make it yourself allowing sufficient time for probiotic inoculation, these are certainly a nutritious choice! It is ultimately a personal preference as long as the yogurt is fermented properly.
If you don’t have access to raw yogurt, whether regular or Greek, then you don’t know what you’re missing. Pasteurized yogurt even if organic pales in comparison to the digestibility and nutrient value of raw yogurt, so if you are able to snag some raw milk from a local farm, here’s how to make it into raw yogurt.
While the recipe below works fine using the microwave as the incubator, yogurt made in a slow cooker is more dependable in texture.
*This helpful recipe idea was given to me by my friend Cynthia Calisch, who has passed away. May she rest in peace.
Raw Yogurt Recipe
How to make raw yogurt using the microwave as the perfect incubation unit (turned off). When raw, yogurt has a pleasant drinkable style texture compared with scoopable heated yogurt.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Plain, whole milk yogurt preferably organic and grass-fed
- 3 3/4 cups Raw cow or goat milk preferably grass-fed
Instructions
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Scoop 1/4 cup of the plain whole milk yogurt into a clean, wide mouth, glass mason jar (I like these). After you've made raw yogurt one time, you can use your own raw yogurt as the starter for subsequent batches.
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Warm the raw milk on the stove to between 105 - 117F. No enzymes or nutrition is lost heating to this temperature but the warmed milk enables the yogurt culture to "take" better than room temperature raw milk.
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Pour about half a cup of the warmed milk into the mason jar and mix with the yogurt.
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Pour the remaining warmed milk into the mason jar, stir and close the lid tightly.
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Wrap the mason jar in a thick hand towel, secure with a rubber band and place inside your microwave closing the door. Leave the light in the microwave on to keep a bit of warmth inside.
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In 24 hours, open the microwave and voila! You will have yourself a lovely quart of raw yogurt!
More Information
Hi Sarah, I just made raw milk yogurt and it came out stringy and gooey. The taste is great, but the texture is weird. Maybe because I used a fair amount of whey instead of yogurt? I used 4 Tablespoons per half gallon raw milk which I heated to 110d. I tried to make whey with it. The whey was not clear. Another time I left the raw milk out for over a week. Half way through I added some whey. It barely curdled. Thoughts?
I have just discovered your site and have purchased Nourishing Traditions. Have made several recipes from both sources. I love the theory and the recipes, but I am getting pretty mucousy with all the dairy. And my tongue gets very sore seems like from the fermented foods. Trying this all out, hoping it will work.
Thoughts?
Thanks,
Phoebe
Will this recipe work with very sour milk (1-2 months sour kept in the refrigerator)?
I would like to make raw yogurt from my soured milk but do not know if it will work the same way or if I should modify the recipe.
@Anne: I’m curious also. Another site said raw sour milk can be used to make yogurt. I tried it last night using my usual recipe and I ended up with 50% clear liquid and 50% clotted chunks; it also smells spoiled. Would like to know what I’m doing wrong.
I just had the same thing happen. I was thinking it was because my milk heated too quickly and also got too hot. (I was distracted by my kids and wasn’t monitoring the process as closely as I should have.) Is there anything that this 50/50 mixture can be used for?
I gave up the microwave long, long ago, so I’m looking for an alternative way of making homemade yogurt. I’ve seen some recipes using the crock pot, but the ingredient used make me feel leery about the process, as well. Do you have any recommendations or recipes to share? Also, what about adding fruit – can this be done while making it or is adding fresh fruit to the final product before eating the best route? Thanks for your help on this subject…an all the others!
Sarah, please help me out here.
I TOTALLY get the whole anti-microwave movement and have embraced it for a few years. However I recently received this article from a trusted source, and now I’m all confused. Can you please shed some light on this subject? http://www.takepart.com/article/2013/02/26/jane-says-everything-you-know-about-microwaves-wrong?cmpid=tpfood-eml-2013-3-8-microwaves
Thanks so much!
Thanks for this post! It has helped unintimidate me to this! Two questions. 1) can I use my raw milk that’s been frozen? 2) if my microwave doesn’t have a light function are there alternate heat sources? Or should I let the yogurt sit longer to compensate?
Thanks!!
Hello Sarah. I appreciate your post and thank you for useful ways to use my raw milk. What is critical to making yogurt- organic? whole milk? I found “yogormet” at a healthfood store about two hours away(…so its a drive to find the right thing) it’s freeze dried, which i think would matter. So…what does matter?
Sara,
LOVE YOUR POSTS! Thank you for all you do! I have raw milk that started to sour. I decided to make raw milk yogurt. I shook up the milk, heated the milk to 110 F and it separated and turned into a gooey clump like a stringy blob! HELP! What happened? Is it still good to use? What should I do? Also, I received an Excalibar Dehydrator for Christmas and would like to use it for making yogurt. Should I use the dehydrator at 110 F for 5 – 7 hours according to the instructions? Shouldn’t it be for 24 hour to get the beneficial bacteria? Is it better to culture raw milk on the counter for 24hours than to use a dehydrator?
Thank you,
Celeste
Hi Sarah,
I made my first batch of raw yogurt this morning and am awaiting results. I did not have a thermometer to check the temperature. The milk almost came to boil and I hope i did not kill it! What do you think of the probiotic starter from a generic supermarket? Is it optimal?
My girlfriend taught me how to make almond yogurt with sprouted almonds, fresh coconut water (and flesh) and my favorite blend of powder or liquid probiotics. I’m curious. Has anyone tried making frozen yogurt from the raw milk? Does that defeat the purpose of using raw? I love tart frozen yogurt but getting it from a shop is usually not as healthy as one I imagine I could make.